In the last decade, descendants of immigrants to Europe are coming of age in growing numbers and forming families. Studies of this "second generation" commonly investigate the extent to which the practices of such offspring resemble those of their country of origin vis-a-vis the country of destination--and, thus, the extent to which acculturation is taking place (Milewski, 2010). Turkish immigrants offer a case in point: According to recent statistics, the average age of marriage for women is 21 years in Turkey and 32 years in Denmark. The average age of marriage for Turkish descendant women in Denmark (2)--which was as low as 19 in the 1990s (Celikaksoy-Mortensen, 2006)--is now 23 (Hacettepe University, 2009; Rockwool, 2013; Statistics Denmark, 2013). Hence, some measure of assimilation appears to be taking place, with a central element in the family formation process of the Turkish immigrant women (i.e., age of marriage) gradually approaching--although still far from reaching--the host country average.

Nevertheless, we ought to be cautious when making quantitative comparisons between different groups: As Glick (2010) points out, despite apparent structural similarities, the social meaning of given family forms may vary between different groups. Consequently, we cannot tell whether the meaning of marriage is similar in the majority and minority groups. If we want to better understand family transitions in a comparative perspective, we must supplement large-scale quantitative comparisons with data on the underlying micro-sociological processes (Mitchell, 2006). This article does so by comparing the family formation processes of majority Danish women with those of Turkish immigrant women, the focus being on the changes in the latter group. Our research question is how a comparative analysis of the timing and sequencing of family formation transitions can deepen our understanding of the changes in this specific immigrant group as compared to the native majority.

The topic of (changes in) ethnic minority family formation processes vis-a-vis those of the host country majority holds societal importance, as such processes often draw considerable media and political attention. Epitomized in concerns over "forced marriages" (Razack, 2004), a dichotomization between "native" and "foreign" practices is particularly pertinent with respect to intimate relationships. Especially the conduct of women in such matters is often attributed great importance, as their behaviour here is also seen as demarcating ethnic and national group boundaries (Suarez-Orozco and Qin, 2006; Yuval-Davis, 1997). This article documents the rapid changes in the family formation practices of one ethnic minority group and relates these changes to post-migratory life in the context of the Scandinavian welfare state.

We draw on biographical interviews, a method well suited for increasing our understanding of the complex meanings of transitional behaviours (Mitchell, 2006), and we use the timing and sequencing of transitions in the family formation processes as our conceptual framework.

The article outlines our methodological approach before discussing the general family formation processes in Denmark and Turkey. It then describes our use of life story interviews before comparing and contrasting the family formation processes of majority Danish women with "early" Turkish and "recent" Turkish immigrant women. The article closes with a discussion of the changes taking place in the Turkish immigrant population as compared to the situation in the surrounding majority.

Conceptually, we focus on transitions in the family formation processes, as such transitions are "socially created, socially recognized and socially shared" and generally specific to different groups (Hagestad and Neugarten, 1985). One way by which individuals assign social meaning to events such as entrance into marriage and parenthood is by considering whether these events are relatively on-time, early, or late (Bengtson and Allen, 1993). …